Ostrander Wins Wisconsin adidas Invite

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That's what freshman Allie Ostrander told herself in the last 400m, just moments before she crossed the finish line in first place to win the Wisconsin adidas Invitational with a 6-kilometer course record time of 19:19.5. Ostrander joins Cal Poly's Laura Hollander (2012) as just the second freshman in meet history to win the prestigious event.

The 19:19.5 broke the course record by 12 seconds, which was previously held by seven-time NCAA Champion Abbey D'Agostino.

"It feels awesome," Ostrander said on the race. "I didn't expect this at all. I'm just super happy to have run a solid race."

Ostrander immediately found her way to the lead pack at the start of the race and settled into seventh at the 2k mark. The freshman gradually made her move up the lead pack, eventually moving into third place after 4k right with two seniors; Notre Dame's Molly Seidel and Arkansas' Dominique Scott.

The last 400m saw Scott drop off the pace, leaving Ostrander and Seidel alone to duke it out for the title. The freshman dug in and grinded it out, taking down Seidel - the 2015 NCAA 10,000m Outdoor Track and Field Champion - for the win.

"It was crazy, really an unreal experience," said Ostrander on going toe-to-toe with Seidel and Scott. "I viewed them as the favorites, it's just so exciting. I have always looked up to them, and I was fortunate to get the win."

Head coach Corey Ihmels was also impressed by the freshman's performance.

"Fantastic," said Ihmels. "To come out here and break the course record, it's just out of this world. She was so fast at the end, and looked great doing it."

The No. 6 Broncos took sixth in the team standings, scoring 249 points. Brenna Peloquin ran an outstanding race, finishing in 27th after recording a 20:17.4. Minttu Hukka notched a top-50 finish after running a 20:28.6 for 45th.

"The women did a great job," said Ihmels. "We got some things accomplished today. It wasn't perfect, but we were solid. We got better and we're right where we need to be."

The men's team enjoyed an exceptional performance as well, taking 11th place in the 36-team field. With 387 points, the Broncos beat seven teams that are ranked ahead of them in the top 30 of the most recent USTFCCCA Coaches' Poll.

"They did exactly what we needed them to do," said Ihmels. "They were tough in the end when they needed to be, and they showed a lot of heart."

On the men's side, Michael Vennard led the charge for the Broncos yet again on the 8-kilometer course, finishing in 17th place with a time of 23:51.8. Fellow sophomore Louis McAfee was close behind with a 24:05.8 for 37th place.